It wasn’t long after Jenny and I had arrived in Las Vegas last week and I’d had my usual I-didn’t-bring-enough-money panic attack (which came about five minutes after we’d been dumb enough to tell the cabbie at the airport we were from out of town) that I came up with the perfect solution for my financial future.
I don’t drink coffee, but I more than make up for it in cola consumption. But I don’t drink just any cola. I won’t drink, for example, the sickeningly sweet one that — according to its commercials, at least — makes you spasm uncontrollably in the street after one sip. And for the first couple of days, that’s the only cola I could find being served in the casinos and restaurants we visited.
So here’s my deal (in Vegas you have to have a deal, don’t you?). Give me the grease that was applied to get the wrong cola installed exclusively in those casinos, and I’ll be happy to retire without any other pension or Social Security or any other form of income. How much would those rights be worth, just for one casino? Seven figures? Eight? Ten?
In the land of spectacle and conspicuous consumption and — call me a cynic, but this is what I believe — an awful lot of plastic surgery, the bigger numbers are the better ones. That, I guess, explains why a geoduck clam — a clam, singular — was on one menu for $198.88 (what are the 88 cents for, I wonder?) and Kobe beef filets were in the $170 price range.
We didn’t eat at those places, although I did enjoy fresh canteloupe and pineapple, a spectacular self-designed omelette, corned-beef hash, swordfish with pineapple glaze, Thai barbecued salmon, paella with Andouille sausage, chicken Milanese, roast leg of lamb with apple mint jelly, berries in some kind of light sauce and a raspberry cream dessert with chocolate sprinkles.
At one meal.
At breakfast.
Yes, a lot of people come to Vegas just for the buffets.
Jenny and I generally had more modest dining in mind. The former adage about Las Vegas food being cheap to entice patrons to the casinos is now true only in the downtown area, which is a must to see anyway for the Fremont Street Experience (a light show that’s three blocks long and 100 feet tall). The Golden Gate hotel — the city’s oldest, built in 1905 — is on Fremont Street, and its Bay City Cafe is the home of the 99-cent shrimp cocktail, an exceptionally good strawberry margarita and my personal favorite, a $13 porterhouse. That was our second-favorite place.
Our favorite remains the Florida Cafe, the only Cuban restaurant in Las Vegas — Cuban sandwiches to die for, with crunchy Cuban bread that was the highlight of the trip; fried plantains, Jenny’s favorite; and a steak with a hole cut out of the middle and stuffed with chorizo (spicy sausage). Plus, I can get Jupina there (Cuban pineapple soda, or as the can says, gaseoso de pina).
Our favorite restaurant along the Strip was probably Jean Jaques’ Boulangerie in Paris Las Vegas — nice salads and sandwiches and (if your French is good you’ll know this) some rather spectacular pastries and desserts. Jenny found sugar-free chocolate mousse cake, I found gelato.
We did things besides eat too, of course. We caught the Three Blonde Moms comedy tour at Harrah’s Improv, went to Second City, and on Saturday night we watched Carlos Santana reaffirm his place among the pantheon of guitar gods. I couldn’t get the ladies in front of me to stand up and dance — which would have given me an excuse to do so — so I had to dance sitting down for more than two hours. The young Hispanic man sitting next to me was offended, I think, by my enthusiasm and finally moved to a different seat.
Youth, as they say, is wasted on the young.
By Saturday we knew shortcuts to everywhere and had figured out the city bus schedules so getting around — even, I reluctantly admit, to the outlet malls — was a breeze. Of course we had to fly out the next day.
So we don’t know how the Omaha Crusaders did in the finals of their basketball tournament (those girls, two or possibly three of them soon to play for Creighton, were our neighbors for a few days) and we didn’t win any money (believe me, I would have bragged if we had). We are happy to be home to field Ryan’s questions and have lapfuls of Darcy and Jo Jo and Shakira again.
It wasn’t really necessary, though, to greet us with a stickier version of the weather we had out there.
Andy Amey can be reached after 4 p.m. for comments or news items at 1-800-783-8742 or at (812) 231-4277; by e-mail at andy.amey@tribstar.com; by mail at P.O. Box 149, Terre Haute, IN, 47808; or by fax at (812) 231-4321.
Amey Takes Aim
Amey takes aim: Las Vegas offers more than just casinos
- Amey Takes Aim
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AMEY TAKES AIM: Getting ready for the dance
Terre Haute North got the good news Sunday night — or did it?
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AMEY TAKES AIM: Harrowing path for state hopefuls
The bad news is that the winner of Class 4A Sectional 13 in boys basketball heads northeast instead of southeast for regional play in March — to Hinkle Fieldhouse instead of Seymour as a result of Indiana High School Athletic Association’s changes.
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AMEY TAKES AIM: A superior all-star arrangement
I don’t work on Wednesdays, so I wasn’t able to attend the first Wabash Valley Football Coaches Association draft last week to set up the annual all-star game that will be June 23 this year.
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AMEY TAKES AIM: The biggest & baddest of a holiday classic
There are more things to love about the Pizza Hut Wabash Valley Classic than could fit in this newspaper, but one of this year’s best things was that for an hour or so on Wednesday, it was Justin Paddock’s world and we were just living in it.
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AMEY TAKES AIM: Taking note of ISU’s latest football win
The biggest difference I’ve noticed, as I transition from the high school football beat to quasi-official status as the Indiana State football beat writer for a few weeks, is the length of the games.
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AMEY TAKES AIM: IHSAA playoff draw not as bad as it could have been
First reaction to the Indiana sectional football pairings drawn late Sunday by the Indiana High School Athletic Association? It could have been a lot worse.
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ANDY AMEY: Between the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame & a hard place
Just in case any of you noticed — with some anticipation — the recent lack of my bylines, I can tell you that your wish (and mine) did come true. It was vacation week for the Amey family.
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Amey Takes Aim: UFC fighter’s bloodines traced back to ISU brothers
As a mild-mannered reporter from a great metropolitan newspaper — or thereabouts — I admit I haven’t paid much attention to the burgeoning mixed martial arts scene.
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AMEY TAKES AIM: Predators’ win is music to new fan’s ears
For many, many years, the number of live games televised on WGN has been cited as perhaps the main reason for the popularity of the Chicago Cubs (it’s got to be something besides masochism, right?).
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AMEY TAKES AIM: You’ll be having a good ol’ time on vacation with the Ameys
When one of the first people you meet is Tammy Wynette’s stepdaughter, when you’ve stepped on the feet of people you haven’t met while trying to navigate Ernest Tubbs’ old Silver Eagle tour bus, and when the activities director of your resort is, well, Elvis, you might be vacationing in Nashville.
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AMEY TAKES AIM: The Annual All-Amey basketball teams close out the prep season
The most encouraging boys high school basketball event I’ve attended so far in 2011 has been the Lafayette Semistate a couple of weeks ago.
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AMEY TAKES AIM: Family remembers Cheryl Weatherman as caring grandmother
As far as Riley and Keely Davis are concerned, Cheryl Weatherman was simply their grandmother, and a pretty darn good one at that.
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AMEY TAKES AIM: Honor to see Turkey Run girls close out memorable career
I don’t know if anyone in this part of the state could actually say they enjoy going to Fort Wayne and back, but I was glad to see the Turkey Run Warriors play one last time during the girls basketball state finals Saturday.
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So many matches, so many favorites
Go ahead, ask me anything about the 224 wrestlers who competed last week at the Indiana state finals — or at least about the 112 wrestlers who survived Saturday’s first round.
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ANDY TAKES AIM: A sportwriters’s lament: Oh, the games we missed
I was already tired of winter by the time that first bitterly cold snap passed through in mid-December, so it’s safe to say the season hasn’t grown on me.
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AMEY TAKES AIM: Time of the season for teams to tough it out
In the last month or so I figure I’ve seen at least four boys high school basketball teams with legitimate state-championship dreams as the season heads into its dog days.
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AMEY TAKES AIM: It's the fall 2010 Amey Awards
I won’t get to know the kids from Casey and North Putnam until they come to Terre Haute in droves next June for the Wabash Valley Football Coaches Association All-Star game, so I guess it’s not too early for the high school football awards from this space.
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AMEY TAKES AIM: An early look at Indiana prep football playoffs
I wasn’t at all surprised to watch Linton pick up a 20-point win over previously unbeaten North Knox in high school football last Friday, one week after the Miners had lost by 40 to North Daviess.
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AMEY TAKES AIM: Baseball season rounding third for an exciting ending
Major League baseball is coming down to an interesting week for the National League, then a couple of interesting weeks for the American League.
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AMEY TAKES AIM: Look for me in the yellow shirt
I won’t be wearing pink or blue tonight for the Terre Haute South-Terre Haute North volleyball match at North, but I’m anticipating that plenty of you will be.
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AMEY TAKES AIM: Little QB had big moments in ISU blue
You won’t find his name easily in the Indiana State record book, but for my money the best quarterback the Sycamores have ever had was Verbie Walder.
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Amey Takes Aim: Biggest baseball pet peeve … Nibbling
Having seen some outstanding baseball — and some not-so-outstanding baseball — at literally every level of play this spring and summer, I have identified what without a doubt is my main pet peeve with the sport. Nibbling. I’m not referring to popcorn or pretzels or nachos or cheese sticks or corn dogs or snow cones or candy or ice cream. Those can also be a serious problem — particularly if the kids are with me — but one that can be solved by simply running out of money.
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AMEY TAKES AIM: Head to the high seas: Ameys’ vacation cruise
It’s good to be king. Abdication? Not so good.
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World Cup replaces void opened when Stanley Cup ended
It’s niche sports day here at the Tribune-Star, so we’ll start with a test of how much you learned while watching the recent National Hockey League season.
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AMEY TAKES AIM: Win or lose, a softball season to remember
Well, this is awkward. I’m writing this late Monday night, with my Tuesday and Wednesday days off in the future, not knowing entirely how happy I am with state-finals softball.
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Amey Takes Aim: Wabash Valley is a softball powerhouse
Greetings from the high school softball capital of Indiana. Your Tribune-Star will be spending all day Saturday at Ben Davis, dominating the press box and elbowing those other newspapers to the back row where they belong. No other paper has as many teams to cover as we do (go Panthers, go Miners and go Patriots); The Times and Post-Tribune get off to a good start with Whiting (against Riverton Parke) and Wheeler (versus Linton), but couldn’t get anything going among the bigger schools (now that my cousin Keith Hauber no longer coaches at Lake Central).
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Amey Takes Aim: NHL playoffs > NBA playoffs
Eavesdropping, as I often do, at a couple of sporting events recently, I heard conversations that warmed my heart. At both the Rose-Hulman baseball game recently and the Terre Haute North-Terre Haute South girls tennis match a week ago, I heard spirited arguments involving — the NHL playoffs.
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Amey Takes Aim: Amey family travels to Astros land
I have an uneasy feeling that I know what I’m getting for Fathers Day. Not sure how your family celebrates that holiday, but mine uses it to get me things I wouldn’t otherwise buy for myself. It’s probably the only reason I ever got a cell phone, and a couple of years ago it was a good excuse for a flat-screen TV for the living room. Yes, I use both of them now.
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Amey Takes Aim: Favorite group for boys basketball Amey Awards ... Most Improved team
As much as I enjoyed the girls high school basketball season this past winter, I liked the boys season even better; something about a team winning its last game — or another team practically becoming the 2010 version of “Hoosiers” — will do that for you. Maybe that’s the excuse for having a record number of captains for some of the Andy Amey teams, as you are about to see.
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ANDY AMEY: Butter your popcorn! It’s time for the Amey Awards!
Yes, you’re right. The high school girls basketball season has been over for awhile, which can only mean the Andy Amey teams are getting out a little late this spring.
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